What are viable strategies for resourcing scrappy church ministry?

Scrappy church is an affectionate term for churches that survive and do vital ministry in contexts where models developed for middle class and affluent communities do not apply or make sense. Much of the growth in the mainline churches in recent decades has occurred in churches and communities that could only be described as scrappy – marginalized communities with growing immigrant populations and limited economic resources. While celebrating this growth, mainline church leadership finds itself without effective tools for supporting long-term viability in these very congregations. Denominational leaders often fall back on models developed for more affluent churches and communities. The result imperils the survival of scrappy congregations and sets up expectations that frustrate and isolate local church leaders, stymieing further growth.

I seek to bring together a team, including lay and ordained leaders with decades of collective experience in scrappy church and community contexts, to assess resource strategies currently being promoted by mainline leaders from the vantage point of churches on the economic and cultural margins. To that analysis, we will add a consideration of the strategies for surviving and thriving on limited resources that marginal communities might contribute to the church.